Yamiko: Edge of Humanity
by Maltrazz
Summary: Hikarino Yamiko was a troubled youth talented at fighting, but otherwise seemed like a normal Japanese teen. However, one night turned his life upside down, as 'he' finds 'himself' walking the line between Human and Demon, Male and Female. Secrets revealed, enemies emerged, and allies found, and that's just the beginning of Yamiko's story.
1. Ch 1: Day unto Night

**Yamiko: Edge of Humanity**

**AN:** Hello, and welcome! For quite a while now, I have been working on this idea, and finally the first chapter is finished. Unlike my previous works, this is not a fanfic, but rather an original story.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 1: Day unto Night

A bell rang through the high school, and students flooded the halls. As most of the students prepared to leave, though, one student was going the opposite direction to the Principal's office. The teen's unusual, crimson hair color made them easily visible among the darker hair of the other students, while their slim, athletic build made it difficult to determine their gender at a glance.

As the redhead passed one group of students, one of them called out. "Hey there, Girly Boy! You get called to the Principal for fighting again?"

Whirling around to face the one who addressed him, the redhead grabbed the offending boy's collar, and growled out, "What did you just call me?"

Gulping nervously, the other student stuttered out, "C-Calm down, Hikarino! Y-You don't want to make the old man mad by being late, r-right?"

A glare was the only answer he received at first. After a moment, the redhead just shoved him away and moved on. The scowl on his face deepened when he heard one of the students he was leaving behind say, "Why did you call him that? Everyone knows he hates being called 'girly'."

"Well, can you blame me?" Came the voice of the student who was grabbed. "If he wasn't wearing the boys' uniform, I'd almost think he was a girl. Having a first name like 'Yamiko' doesn't help him, either."

Hearing the others talk about him left Yamiko in a foul mood by the time he reached the Principal's office. As he approached the office, the school secretary, a regular Yamato Nadeshiko named Domeikuni Hana, saw Yamiko's mood, and cautioned the youth. "Better cool it, Yamiko. Even for you, Father only has so much patience."

At the sound of her voice, Yamiko stopped and took a deep breath. Yamiko thought to himself, 'Hana is right. Still, it's hard to believe that such a nice woman is really the daughter of that strict old man.'

"Thanks, Hana, but I'd rather just get this over with." Yamiko said sullenly, before moving past her into the office.

Yamiko was well familiar with the man inside, and not only due to his numerous trips to this office. Domeikuni Inmaru was an elderly man who had been a friend of Yamiko's father, but that didn't keep him from coming down hard on Yamiko when the youth misbehaved.

Yamiko just sighed as he sat down and prepared to tune out the lecture he knew was coming. Folding his hands in front of him, the principal spoke. "Yamiko, we both know why you're here, so I won't beat around the bush. You have to stop fighting on school grounds. The last boy you fought is in the hospital with several broken ribs."

"Ch, not my fault he was so weak." Yamiko scoffed. "He was captain of the Kendo team, for crying out loud."

"That's no excuse!" The principal snapped harshly. "We both know you could easy beat him, and yet you still provoked him needlessly. Your father would be ashamed!"

"And why the Hell would I care what a dead man thinks!?" Yamiko cried angrily, as he jumped to his feet. Without giving the older man a chance to respond, he spun around and stomped out of the room.

"Yamiko, we're not done yet!" Principal Domeikuni called after the redhead, only to be ignored.

As Yamiko stormed out of the school, his thoughts reflected his earlier comment. 'Why the hell should I care what Dad thought? He went and got himself killed, and left Mom and I to fend for ourselves. Besides, his work kept him traveling, so it's not like he was ever there.' Unconsciously, Yamiko's hand rose to the cross that hung around his neck. It was pure ebony, carved with strange symbols, and hung on a simple string. Yamiko didn't know what the significance of the markings, but kept it close. He had had it as long as he could remember, one of his earliest memories being of his father telling him to always keep it close.

While dwelling on just thoughts, Yamiko failed to pay attention where he was walking. As he passed through the school gates, Yamiko collided with someone standing there.

"Ah, my apolo- Oh, it's you." Yamiko looked up, as a familiar voice spoke. Standing in front of Yamiko was a well-built young man, with messy black hair tied up by a long, black bandana, and a pair of glasses on his face.

"Ugh, I am _not_ in the mood to deal with a kid like you, Seigi." Yamiko said with a scowl, his mood going from bad to worse. The person in front of Yamiko was Tsuyoi Seigi, his childhood friend. However, they had been at odds for several years.

Scowling back, Seigi glared over his glasses. "I'm hardly ecstatic to see you either. And stop calling me a kid! I'm a couple months older than you are!"

Feeling that a good fight might help him work off some stress, Yamiko smirked at him, as he said, "Only little kids still believe in monsters."

Seigi grit his teeth and dropped his school bag, revealing that the taunt had worked. Carefully taking off his glasses and setting them on the bag, Seigi replied in a low voice, "My father died at the hands of the demon he was hunting, as did yours. Claiming that such being don't exist just disrespects their memory." Raising up on the balls of his feet, Seigi clenched his fists as he held them up beside his head. "And I refuse to stand by and let you do that!"

"Heh, kinda hard to believe such a serious guy still believes in fairy tales." Yamiko replied, raising his own fists in anticipation. "Our dads just died in a hunting accident, not fighting some Oni!"

Yamiko smirked again as he dodged Seigi's opening punch at his face, only cry out in pain as his opponent turned the blow into an elbow strike to the side of his head. Moving with the momentum of the blow, Yamiko launched a kick, only for it to be blocked by Seigi's other arm. Before Yamiko had a chance to regain his balance, Seigi used his own leg, slamming a knee into Yamiko's stomach, causing the redhead to stagger backwards gasping for breath.

Calming returning to his original stance, Seigi growled out. "Give it up, Yamiko. You'll never defeat me as you are. You might be stronger and faster than most of our peers, but there's still no way you someone with my training."

Wincing as he straightened up, Yamiko grunted out, "That's right, your grandad's some martial arts master, ain't he?" Frowning, Yamiko thought, 'Dammit! I beat that Kendo guy without breaking a sweat. So, why can I never beat this bastard?' Gritting his teeth, Yamiko charged forward again.

* * *

The sun was already setting as Yamiko staggered down the street, clutching his side. "Damn that bastard…" He grumbled. Reaching the entrance to a park, Yamiko turned to enter it, knowing it would be a shortcut to get home.

As it started growing dark, Yamiko couldn't help but look around nervously. "I've never passed through here this late before." He mumbled. "It gets kinda creepy… and for some reason, I feel like I'm being watched…"

"Guess you've got good instincts then, missy." A raspy voice suddenly called out from the darkness.

"Who's there!?" Yamiko cried out as he spun to face the voice. Silence was the only response, until the redhead felt something grip his leg. Looking down, Yamiko's eyes widened in shock. "What the Hell!?"

Wrapped around his leg was slimy red tentacle.

"Got you!" The raspy voice called out again, before more tentacles shot out of the darkness and grabbed onto Yamiko's other limbs.

"W-What is this!? N-no! This has got to be a bad joke!" Yamiko stammered in disbelief, as he struggled against the binding limbs.

As the tentacles wrapped further around Yamiko's form, the voice called out once more, closer now. "What's this? I thought you were a female. No matter, it just means the meat will be a bit tougher!" As it finished speaking, the source of the voice and tentacles emerged from the darkness, revealing an amorphous mass, with an enormous, toothy maw.

"What the Hell are you? Why are you doing this?" Yamiko's voice was little more than a whisper at this point, as shock began to set in.

"Ha! Isn't it obvious? I'm a demon, and you are my next meal." The self-proclaimed demon said, as it drew Yamiko closer to its mouth. However, as Yamiko continued to struggle, the demon noticed the cross around his neck. "Oh my, what do we have here?" It said with a laugh. "A ward against evil, perhaps? You humans should just accept your place as food and- ARGH!"

The demon had moved to tear away the cross, but the moment it touched the runes covering the cross, they began glowing a bright pink, before the cross shattered in a burst of energy.

Yamiko gasped as the strange energy washed over him, burning away the tentacles that bound him. Scrambling backwards, he saw the demon howling in pain, burns marring several of its tentacles and part of its body.

Jumping to his feet, Yamiko took off running, determined to get away before the creature recovered. Sprinting as fast as he could towards home, he stumbled repeatedly, the energy from the cross having left his body feeling strange.

Reaching his home, Yamiko burst inside, and slammed the door behind himself. Falling against the door and sliding to a sitting position, Yamiko was silent for a moment before groaning, "Today seriously sucked." Pushing himself to his feet, Yamiko staggered towards the bathroom, hoping that a good long soak would help him calm down after the events of that evenings.

'What the Hell was that thing? Some kind of mutated octopus?' Yamiko thought. 'There's no way it could have actually been a demon, right?'

Yamiko began to get undressed, only to stop when his chest felt… softer than normal. And seemed to stick out a bit more, too. Slowly unbuttoning and opening 'his' shirt, Yamiko was greeted by the sight of a pair of small yet shapely breasts, which definitely had not been there when he got dressed that morning.

"W-Why do I have breasts?" Yamiko wondered aloud. Swallowing nervously, Yamiko dropped 'his' pants as well, only to confirm 'his' concerns. "Why am I a GIRL!?"

"Yamiko, are you alright?" Came a faint call from elsewhere in the house.

Recognizing the voice, Yamiko called back, "Uh, I'm fine, Mom. I just slipped on my way to take a bath."

"Oh, alright. Just be careful dear." Yamiko's mother replied. "Dinner should be ready when you're done."

To herself, Yamiko thought, 'Is this some kind of sick joke, or has today just been one big nightmare?'

Yamiko spent longer than usual on her bath, both dwelling on everything that had happened, and trying to avoid touching her new parts any more than necessary. However, it was while washing her hair that she made the most startling discovery yet.

"I have HORNS now, TOO!?"

* * *

**AN:** And there we go! Not my longest chapter, and parts seemed a bit rushed, but beginnings have always been a bit of a weak point for me. Hope you enjoyed it so far, and I look forward to hearing your opinions!

Was the demon responsible for the changes in Yamiko, or something else? Why did Yamiko's cross react the way it did? What will Yamiko do about these changes? Find out in future chapters of Yamiko: Edge of Humanity!


	2. Ch 2: Once Upon A Time

**Yamiko: Edge of Humanity**

**AN:** Hello, and welcome! And if I don't post anything else before then, here's an early happy Valentine's Day, too! A lot of exposition in this chapter to finish setting up, but hopefully it's still entertaining.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: Once Upon A Time…

'What. The. Hell.' Yamiko thought while staring into the mirror, speechless. That morning, Yamiko was a somewhat androgynous, but fully male and otherwise ordinary teenager. However, the one staring back from the mirror was definitely female. And that was not even mentioning the pair of small pink horns protruding from her forehead.

"Why is this happening to me?" Yamiko muttered, trying to brush her hair forward to hide the horns. After a few moments she was satisfied, glad that she hadn't gotten her hair cut recently. Frowning at that thought, she checked mirror again, and grumbled, "Yep, my hair's longer too." Indeed, while Yamiko's hair hadn't exactly been short before, it now hung down to her shoulders. "Well, at least my eyes are still the same." Yamiko went on, staring into the reflection of her unusual golden eyes, which she had always taken pride in.

Sighing, Yamiko went to get dressed, before leaving for the dining room. Her family was hardly rich, but still well-off enough to maintain a small house. As she drew closer to her goal, Yamiko smelled the curry her mother had prepared, and she was greeted by the sight of her mother dishing out the meal as she entered.

Yamiko's mother was named Hikarino Maruka. She was an undeniable beauty, with hair the same vibrant red as Yamiko's, but long enough to reach her waist, a shapely figure, a beautiful face and exotic red eyes. However, she did not flaunt her features, wearing a conservative kimono, and keeping her hair tied back in a practical braid.

"Are you hungry, dear?" Maruka asked without looking up.

"Starving." Yamiko replied honestly, the stress of the evening catching up with her. Sitting down, she made sure to hunch forward to make her chest less noticeable. Yamiko knew she would have to tell her mother what happened soon, but didn't want to deal with it that night.

As Maruka sat down as well, she looked to her 'son' with a frown. "You should really start brushing your hair if you're going to let it grow out, Yamiko." Maruka chided. "It would be terrible if it started getting tangled."

Yamiko couldn't help but smile at that. 'If only my hair was my biggest problem right now. Still I'm glad at least Mom hasn't changed, she always did fuss over me.' Yamiko thought, before replying. "Sure thing, Mom, I'll take care of it later."

Maruka tilted her head in thought for a moment, before asking, "Are you alright, dear? You sound a bit… off."

"Uh, n-no, I'm fine!" Yamiko replied, thinking, 'Dammit, I didn't think I sounded that different. I guess if anyone would be able to tell, it would be Mom, though.'

However, Maruka was now scrutinizing Yamiko more closely. Suddenly, Maruka's eyes narrowed, and her voice grew strangely calm. "Yamiko… where's the cross your father gave you?"

Yamiko felt a chill go down her spine. Her mother was always kind and happy. Even when she scolded Yamiko, the teen could heard the concern in her voice. Now however, her mother sounded almost threatening. "I, uh, must have lost it somewhere. Besides, it was just a trinket, it's not like it was that important, right?"

Maruko slowly stood up, never taking her eyes off Yamiko. "Actually, it was very important, which is why I put a Compulsion on it to make sure Yamiko always kept is close." As she spoke, Maruko began to move around the table, and her eyes began to glow with a strange red light. "So I'll ask you this only once; who are you, and where is my son?"

"Compulsion? Mom what are you talking about?" Yamiko said in confusion. Seeing the red glow coming from her mother's eyes, and being reminded of the creature from earlier. Jumping to her feet, she cried, "Wait, does this have something to do with that demon-thing from earlier?"

This gave Maruka pause. "What do you mean, 'demon-thing'? What happened?"

'I didn't want to deal with this tonight, but if something's wrong with Mom…' Yamiko thought. Taking a deep breathe, she began to relate everything that had happened since she left school, her mother watching her closely the whole time. When she finished, Maruka shot forward.

"Oh, why didn't you tell me sooner, dear?" Maruka asked in a relieved tone, as she hugged her son-turned-daughter. "That explains everything!"

"…I-It does?" Yamiko asked in genuine surprise.

"Of course!" Maruka said happily. "Although, I suppose that means it's time for me to tell you a few things."

Yamiko tried to keep asking questions, but her mother refused to say more until they had finished eating. When they were done, however, Yamiko couldn't keep silent any longer. "Mom, what's going on? What was that creature from earlier? What's a 'compulsion' and why were your eyes glowing?"

"Well, that 'creature' was a demon." Maruka explained calmly. "Likely an Incubus, or rather some sub-type of such, since it tried to eat your flesh, rather than forcing itself on you. As for the rest, perhaps it would be best if I started at the beginning. Or at least, the beginning of what matters. That would be almost twenty years ago now, when your father gathered a group of demon slayers, to stop a cult from summoning a Greater Demon into Tokyo…"

* * *

It was a bright and sunny day, but there were five people who could not stop to enjoy it. The first was a middle-aged man uttering a praye. He was the head of the Domeikuni Clan of Onmyouji, exorcists specialized in the use of sealing tags and shikigami. The second was a young woman in the garb of a shrine maiden. She was named Kangoko, and had been born with the power to heal those she touched. The third and fourth members of the group were father and son, the Head and Heir to the Tsuyoi Clan of Demon Slayers, Mujihimaru and Ketsui. They were garbed in black silk, and skilled in the use of the weapons they carried, the father a pair of tonfa, and the son dual tantos.

However, the final member of the group truly stood out. From his bright blond hair to his golden eyes, from his shining European-style plate armor, to the ornate broadsword he easily held in one hand, nothing about Hikarino Kandai was subtle, and being outspoken and honest, his personality matched.

After discovering rumors of the cult and their plans to summon their master to take over Japan, Kandai had dedicated himself to stopping them, travelling all over the country, defeating numerous monsters, demons, and cultists, and gathering together the group with him in the process. Domeikuni, who saw himself as Kandai's Sensei in regards to knowledge of monsters; Kangoko, who was smitten with the oblivious Kandai; Ketsui, who saw himself as Kandai's Rival; and Mujihimaru, who felt it would be foolish to leave the fates of millions in the hands of "children and an over-the-hill onmyouji".

Finally, they had tracked down the cultists' headquarters underneath an office building in the middle of downtown Tokyo.

However, the cultists were not caught unprepared, and their defense was fierce. That said, what the group lacked in numbers, they more than made up in skill.

The cultists initial defense was little more than initiates of the cult that had been armed to slow them down. However, while they were numerous, they were also unskilled, and the group easily broke through. While the rest carried on, Tsuyoi Mujihimaru stayed behind to keep them from getting flanked. As a master of Muay Thai and the Tonfa he carried, as well as the Ninjutsu-like techniques his clan had developed, he alone was more than a match for his opponents.

That was only the beginning. The next defenses came in the form of demons summoned by the cultists, and let loose.

Knowing that the summoning would happen soon, and that they had no more time to waste, the group once more broke through and continued on. This time it was the head of the Domeikuni Clan that stayed behind. His sealing techniques and shikigami made him perfectly suited to face the low level demons the cultists had conjured.

Thus, it was Kandai, Ketsui, and Kangoko who breached the cultists' inner sanctum. However, they were too late. They arrived, only to see the Cult Leader complete the summoning of the cult's object of worship; the Succubus Queen, Mar'kanteto.

What happened next, none of them expected. The Cult Leader pointed at them, and ordered Mar'kanteto to destroy them… only to disappear in a burst of crimson flames, as the demon queen incinerated him instead.

In the conversation that followed, it was revealed that the cultists had acted without Mar'kanteto's permission, and that the demon had no plans to follow through on their intended conquest. Finding out that this was the case, Kandai held back his allies from attacking, offering to let her simply return to the Abyss unharmed. Mar'kanteto agreed…

…but said she would only do so after having a chance to see the modern world.

The group ended up spending an entire day chasing the Succubus Queen all over Tokyo. However, every time they caught up with her, Kandai refused to let her be harmed, as she was not harming anyone either, holding true to her word to merely take in the sights.

Kandai's unusual behavior left Mar'kanteto intrigued. In all her experience as a Greater Demon, Demon Slayers would try to kill her as soon as meet her, simply because of what she was. And so, rather than return to the Abyss, she decided to stay and observe him. Despite his companions urging him to refuse, Kandai agreed to let her stay, convinced that if he kept an eye on her, he could keep her from harming anyone.

Mar'kanteto fully expected to grow tired of the human quickly, and return to her realm. That never happened, though. Kandai liked to think of himself as a Monster Hunter, rather than a Demon Slayer, and this intrigued his demonic guest. Kandai didn't restrict himself to demons, but rather dealt with any supernatural problems. And rather than killing any non-humans he met, Kandai tried his best to find solutions that helped every party involved.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, until two years past. Mar'kanteto had grown accustomed to living with Kandai, and he with her. However, when a demon attacked Mar'kanteto, only for Kandai to risk his life to protect her, the demon found herself faced with feelings she had never experienced before, similar to yet different from the simple lust she was used to.

After realizing that she had fallen in love with him, Mar'kanteto confronted Kandai about it. Kandai was surprised at that, but unable to deny that he had started developing feeling for her, as well. However, while Kandai wanted to believe her, his friends were convince it was a succubus trick. Determined to convince them, he offered a solution to Mar'kanteto; a seal to completely suppress her demonic powers, effectively making her human.

Although reluctant, Mar'kanteto agreed, knowing that it would also help keep the two of them from being harassed be demons that would see her as a traitor, or simply wanted to build their reputation by killing her.

And so, the unlikely pair of Demon Queen and Monster Hunter were married. Mar'kanteto dropped the ending from her name, and used the Japanese pronunciation for it, and nearly a year later…

* * *

"-you were born, dear." Maruka finished her tale.

Yamiko simply sat there in stunned silence for a moment, trying to process everything she had just heard. Oddly enough, the first coherent thought to go through her head was, 'I'd better apologies to Seigi, he was right.' After thinking about it though, there were only two major questions she had left. "What was so special about the cross I always wore? And why did I change into a girl?"

"The cross was your father's idea, though I agreed with it and help create it. It was a lesser version of the seal your father gave me. As a half-demon, you were bound to show signs such as horns or even wings, but the cross would seal your power to let you grow up as normally as possible. That said, it had a fail-safe to release your power in the even that you were ever in serious danger."

"Is that what that compulsion thing was for?" Yamiko asked.

"Compulsions are a weak sort of mind control. More of a suggestion than a command." Maruka clarified. "That part of it was just to make sure you didn't simply decide to stop wearing it on a whim. Your father grew up on the road, and I never really had a childhood, so we wanted you to enjoy it while it lasted. As for why you turned into a girl…" Maruka paused in thought for a moment. "Well, succubi are natural shapeshifters, so perhaps it was the result of your powers being unsealed after having been suppressed for so long."

Feeling a surge of hope, Yamiko asked, "So, wouldn't that mean I can just change back whenever?"

"Eventually yes, but it will likely take some practice before you can perform a full gender transformation." Maruka said. "If we start training tomorrow, though, you'll probably be able to change back in a couple of months."

"MONTHS!?" Yamiko cried, "But I have to go to school tomorrow!"

"Oh come, dear, would it really be that bad to go as a girl?" Maruka asked, before giggling at her daughter's resulting glare. "Alright dear, I'll put some thought into it, and see if I can come up with something. Now, it's been a long evening, so why don't you head on to bed?"

As Yamiko settled into bed, she couldn't help but dwell on the coming day. As she drifted off, one last thought occurred to her, 'If Seigi was right about demons, then does that mean he was right about how our dads died, too?'

* * *

**AN:** And there we go! Some of you might be wondering, 'If you put that much thought into it, why not tell Kandai's story?' The reason is quite simple; Kandai's story would be the typical shounen story you've seen done a multitude of times. I want to do something at least a tad more original, though only time will tell how well I succeed. Still, hopefully you enjoyed the set-up for the story, and if not, then have no worries, because things will start to pick up after this.

Will Maruka come up with a way to turn Yamiko back into a guy? Or will Yamiko have to deal with going to school as a girl? How will awakening her powers as a half-demon affect Yamiko's life? Find out in future chapters of Yamiko: Edge of Humanity!


	3. Ch 3: Androgynous Advantages

**Yamiko: Edge of Humanity**

**AN:** Hello again, all! Sorry for the long time without any updates. IRL issues, distracted by games, etc.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 3: Androgynous Advantages

It was the alarm on Yamiko's phone that woke the youth up, just like any other morning. Silencing it, the redhead sat up with a yawn. 'What a weird dream.' Yamiko thought. 'I got turned into a girl, and Mom was talking about demons, and-'

Yamiko's thoughts ground to a halt as she looked down. As a guy, Yamiko had grown used to sleeping in nothing but a pair of boxers, meaning there was nothing block her view of her newly acquired breasts.

'…Okay, I guess it wasn't a dream.' Yamiko thought, after a moment of renewed shock.

Getting dressed, Yamiko headed downstairs to find her mother. Hearing the familiar sound of her mother humming to herself, Yamiko followed the sound to the kitchen.

"AAAAAAH!" Only to fall backwards with a scream, at what she saw when she opened the door.

As expected, Yamiko's mother was in the process of cooking breakfast. However, she looked completely different from normal. Her usual kimono was gone, leaving her clad only in a revealing outfit of tight, red leather that resembled a bikini more than actual clothing, and her long hair hung loose down her back in a bushy mane. However, what caught Yamiko's attention was the three pairs of crimson, bat-like wings sprouting her back, the trio of spaded tails protruding from the base of her spine, and the three pairs of curved horns protruding through her hair like a demonic crown.

"Are you alright, dear?" Maruka asked innocently, as she looked over her shoulder at her fallen daughter. "Breakfast will be ready in a moment, so there's no need to hurry so much that you trip."

"That doesn't matter!" Yamiko cried out, pointing at her mother accusingly. "What the Hell happened to you, Mom!"

"Hmm?" Maruka cocked her head in confusion. Looking down at her outfit, she exclaimed, "Oh, that's right! You haven't seen me like this, yet, have you?" Turning to fully face her daughter, wings flared and eyes glowing with a Hellish light, Maruka continued. "This is my true form! Behold, the Queen of all Succubi, Mar'kanteto!" As if a switch had been flipped afterwards, Maruka folded her wings and smiled sweetly. "So, what do you think, dear?"

"WHAT DO I THINK!? YOU ALMOST GAVE ME A HEART ATTACK!" Yamiko yelled. Calming down, she asked, "Besides, I thought you said Dad sealed your power, right?"

"True, but he was just trying to prove I wasn't tricking him." Maruka explained, waving it off. "After being married for a couple years, he altered the seal so that I could activate and deactivate it whenever I wanted. After all, we couldn't have a child with my powers sealed."

Getting up and moving to the table, Yamiko asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well, Succubi are primarily Lust Demons, making sex the easiest way for us to gain power. As such, we evolved the ability to completely control our bodies, especially our reproductive systems. In other words, Succubi can't get pregnant unless they want to. I had altered my body to be infertile, so I needed my powers back to fix that." In an all-too-innocent tone, she added, "Which means that means you should be fine if you want to fool around, too, if you'd like to."

"MOM!" Yamiko cried in embarrassment. "I've been a guy up until now, so it's not like I'd do that as a girl, anyway."

"Why not? It can be fun to experience things from the other perspective." Maruka replied, before going on. "Of course, that brings me to why I'm in this form. As nice as it is to stretch my wings, I was thinking about how to get you changed back, and I might be able to change you back with my own powers."

"Really!?" Yamiko asked excitedly.

"I said 'maybe'. It's been a while since I've needed to use my powers, so there's no guarantee that it will work." Maruka cautioned, as she brought over the food she had been cooking. "Breakfast comes first, though, so eat up!"

Yamiko quickly ate her meal, eager to go back to being male. As she finished up, Yamiko noticed her mother was not eating anything.

Seeing her child's questioning look, Maruka explained. "Things like eating and sleeping are human concerns. I don't even need to breathe except for when I want to speak," Maruka suddenly got a mischievous glint in her eye, as she added, "Although, that can certainly be helpful for us Succubi."

Part of Yamiko wanted to know what her mother meant by that last part, but at the same time, she got the feeling she did _not_ want to hear the answer. Instead, she pointed out, "But I've seen you eating meals before, and there've been nights you fell asleep before me."

Waving a hand airily, Maruka said, "That's because of your father's seal on me. While it's active I must sustain myself by human means, rather than using more _traditional_ Succubus methods." Glancing at the clock, Maruka went on, "Oops, we'll have to talk more later, dear. You're going to be late for school if you don't get going."

"EH!? But you haven't changed me back to a guy yet!" Yamiko protested.

"Oh, that's right." Maruka said, as if having completely forgotten her child's current gender. "Hold still, dear." Moving closer to Yamiko, Maruka placed her hands on either side of the teen's face, and leaned down…

Only for Yamiko's eyes to nearly pop out of her head as Maruka kissed her firmly on the lips.

Spreading out from her lips, a tingling feeling enveloped Yamiko's body, focused in her newly acquired horns and breasts. After a moment, the feeling began to fade, and Yamiko remembered the situation she was in.

Practically throwing herself backward, she stared at her mother in shock. "M-Mom! What are you doing!?"

Giggling, Maruka said, "Your father warned me humans considered 'certain acts' between family members to be taboo, but really, dear, it was just a kiss." Her expression became concerned as she added, "Although, I seem to have gotten a bit rusty, as it didn't work quite as well as I'd hoped."

"Huh?" Reaching for the areas where the strange feeling had been most intense, Yamiko was pleasantly surprised to find her horns gone, and her chest flatter… Unfortunately, 'flatter' still was not 'flat'. "Wait, I'm still a girl!"

"Well, I did warn you that it wasn't guaranteed to work," Maruka said, before grinning, "but don't worry, I have a back-up plan. Take off your shirt."

After what had just happened, that set off warning bells for Yamiko. Crossing her arms over her chest protectively, she cried out, "Hell, no! The kiss was bad enough!"

Her playful grin back in full force, Maruka suddenly pulled a roll of bandages from somewhere, and said, "I was just going to suggest binding your chest until you could change back, but if you had something else in mind…"

"DAMMIT, MOM!" Yamiko shouted in embarrassment, as she snatched the bandages and ran off to the privacy of her room. A few minutes later found Yamiko looking at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, her school uniform in place, the bandages tightly wrapping her chest underneath. The effect was… odd. At first glance, she looked like she was male again, but it was not quite right. The longer she looked, the more differences she found; her hair a bit longer, a hint of curves at her hips, a slight bulge of her chest if she stood completely straight or leaned back, even her hands were slightly more slender.

"It looks fine, dear. As long as you act normally, no one should suspect a thing." Looking towards the sound of the voice, Yamiko saw her mother standing there, looking human once more, and with her earlier teasing grin replaced with the kindly smile she knew better. "You really should get going, though, you're going to be late for school unless you hurry."

Pulling out her phone to check the time, Yamiko's eyes widened as she saw that it was already ten minutes after she usually left. Running past her mother with a cry of, "See you later!" Yamiko quickly grabbed her school bag and headed out the door, barely remembering to slip her shoes on as she went.

Smiling at the sight, Maruka thought, 'I wish changing back to a male could remain your greatest concern forever, Yamiko. With your powers unsealed, however, it's only a matter of time before you have much more to worry about… And if what I've heard is true, only a matter of time until _she_ finds us, then then all Hell may break loose.'

Moving over to a framed picture showing Maruka and her husband holding Yamiko as a baby, Maruka whispered, "I'm sorry, Kandai. I couldn't keep Yamiko from being exposed to our world. My powers have waned, and I can't keep her safe. But, I'll do everything I can to prolong the inevitable, and prepare her for what is to come."

Moving to the phone, Maruka made a call. "Ah, good morning, Hana, it's Hikarino Maruka. Can you please transfer me to your father? Thanks. Hello, Inmaru, it's Maruka. It's about Yamiko, I need to ask you a favor…"

* * *

**AN:** And there we go! Sorry for the shorter chapter, but between the good ending point and my lack of recent writing updates, I hope it will work well for the moment.

How will Yamiko handle her first day as a girl? Will she be able to keep her gender change and demonic nature a secret? Who did Maruka call at the end and what did she need? Find out in future chapters of Yamiko: Edge of Humanity!


	4. Ch 4: Teacher, Classmates, and Other

**Yamiko: Edge of Humanity**

**AN:** Well, that certainly took long enough. Been focusing more on my fanfictions, of late, due to how much more popular they are, but I've been working on this slowly but surely in between.

Without further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 4: Teachers, Classmates, and Other Dangers

"There was definitely a demon here."

In the middle of a park stood black-haired youth in a school uniform, glasses, and a black bandanna on his forehead. His school bag laid at his feet, his hands were folded in front of him, index and middle fingers extended, and his eyes closed in concentration.

"The aura's several hours old, at least, maybe a day…" He muttered, "I'll have to look into this more la-" Only to suddenly be cut off as someone ran into him.

"AAH! Sorry about that!" Came a familiar voice. "Wait, Seigi!? What are you doing here?"

Tsuyoi Seigi looked over his shoulder to see a head of distinctive red hair. "First yesterday, and now you run into me again. Do you really pay that little attention, Yamiko, or do you just like getting your ass kicked?"

Recovering from her surprise, Yamiko shook her head, "Check the time, idiot! We're going to be late if we don't hurry!" Without waiting for his response, she pushed past him and began running once more. A glance at his watch confirmed Yamiko's words, and Seigi quickly scooped up his schoolbag and chased after.

After a few minutes of running together in silence, Seigi looked at his companion in confusion. 'The Yamiko I know would never pass up an opportunity to taunt me and try to start a fight, but right now he's being unusually quiet.'

Meanwhile, Yamiko was deep in thought herself. 'What should I say to him? "Sorry I've been calling you an idiot for years, turns out you were right about demons!" Somehow that doesn't seem good enough…'

"So, aren't you going to ask what I was doing there?" Seigi asked to break the silence. "You know it's not on my route to school."

Yamiko shook her head. 'You're always going on about being the heir to a Demon Slayer Clan,' Yamiko thought. 'So, of course you'd end up where I was attacked. I never would have gone back through there if I weren't in such a hurry. Although, actually having daylight doesn't hurt either.' Out loud, she said, "Nah, I've got a pretty good idea why you were there." Seeing the gates of the school coming up, she went on, "No time to talk about it now, though. How about we meet up at lunch?"

Seigi raised an eyebrow skeptically, saying, "Did I hit you a little too hard yesterday? You're acting unusually friendly for some reason."

"Like I said, we'll talk later." Yamiko replied with another shake of her head. Still moving at full speed, the pair made it to their homeroom just as the first bell rang.

…Only to sit restlessly in their seats with their fellow students for over ten minutes before the door opened again. When it did, their usual homeroom teacher entered, accompanied by an unfamiliar man with glasses, a face covered with stubble, slumped shoulders, and messy black hair.

"Attention class!" The teacher called out. Once most of the students were looking towards her, the teacher laid a hand on her noticeably pregnant belly, and continued. "As some of you may have already guessed, I'm going on maternity leave. So, before I go, I'd like to introduce my replacement, both as your homeroom and English teacher, Suhoru Redofierudo."

"Zhor Redfield," The man corrected her, his smooth, rich baritone at odds with his scruffy appearance. "Although, in Great Britain the family name goes last, so here it would be Redfield Zhor."

"Ah, s-sorry," the pregnant teacher apologized with a blush. Clearing her throat, she said, "W-Well, I'll let you take over then, and I'll be on my way. Be nice to your new teacher, class!" With that said, their former teacher left the room.

Grabbing a piece of chalk, the new teacher wrote his name on the blackboard. Turning to face the class, he cleared his throat to get attention, and when he spoke, Yamiko was again struck his oddly appealing voice. "First, let's get a few common questions out of the way. You can address me as 'Mr. Redfield' or 'Sensei'. I lived in England before this, in a small town none of you have likely heard of. I am quite fluent in several languages, English and Japanese obviously among them. Anything else can wait until later, as we're already running behind, so I'll start taking role."

After that abrupt introduction, he began to take attendance. As he did so, however, Yamiko noticed something odd. Since he had entered the room, Redfield had only used his right hand, leaving his left hand in his pocket. As he turned to face the class, Yamiko noticed his left wrist was wrapped in bandages.

"What happened to your hand?" It took Yamiko a moment before she realized she had blurted out the question aloud.

The teacher turned to face her, a frown on his face at the interruption. As his eyes met hers, Yamiko was struck by their alluring crimson color. "What is your name?" He asked.

"Y-Yamiko. H-Hikarino Yamiko." Yamiko stammered, her face heating up as his exotic eyes and commanding voice made it hard to think. His eyes, especially, were unlike any she had ever seen.

'Well, except for Mom,' Came a stray thought… which was immediately followed by a realization. 'And Mom is a demon… which means…'

_"Compulsions are a weak sort of mind control. More of a suggestion, than a command."_

As soon as Yamiko remembered her mother's words, the haze over her mind vanished. 'That bastard was trying to control me!' Yamiko thought, her expression morphing into a glare.

If Redfield noticed any change, he gave no sign of it, however. "Hikarino, is it?" He said, making her name sound as if he were spitting out something disgusting. "If you must know, I burned myself preparing dinner last night. Now, where was I?"

As he continued taking attendance, Yamiko glanced around the class, noticing most of her classmates acting the same way she had been; staring at the new teacher dreamily, smiling or blushing as they did. A few seemed to be acting normally, or looking confused, Seigi being amongst the latter.

It looked like they had one more thing to discuss.

* * *

Yamiko was worried as she climbed the stairs to the roof. Part of it was that she was still trying to figure out what to say to Seigi, but mostly it had to do with their new teacher. It was bad enough that he seemed to be a demon, but there was something else nagging at her that she just could not put her finger on.

When Yamiko reached the roof, she saw that Seigi was already there, sitting on a bench. At the sound of the door to the stairs opening, he looked up, his brown eyes locking with Yamiko's golden ones.

"Heh, I was worried that you might have forgotten that we used eat lunch on the roof." Yamiko said as she approached the waiting teen.

"You know I have an eidetic memory, Yamiko. You think I would forget something we used to do daily?" Seigi replied. "But that's beside the point. What's going on with you? You've been acting weird all morning." Yamiko was silent as she sat down next to him, still trying to figure out how to say what she wanted to say. After a moment of awkward silence, Seigi stood up to leave, saying, "Look, Yamiko, if you-"

"I'm sorry!" Yamiko blurted out, interrupting him. As her face flushed in embarrassment at having to apologize, she muttered, "There, I said it, alright?"

"…What?" Seigi said, after staring at the redhead in surprise for a moment. Yamiko was not acting like the arrogant, taunting rival he had come to know. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "Who are you, and what did you do with Yamiko?"

Yamiko let out a short laugh, at how similar that was to what her mother had said. "Nah, I'm still me… sort of."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Seigi asked as he sat back down.

Yamiko took a deep breath, before deciding to just come out and say it. "Last night I was attacked by a demon. It happened in the park you were at this morning."

"That must have been what I sensed…" Seigi started, before what his rival said finished registering. "Wait, you were attacked!? How did you get away?"

Yamiko lifted a hand to her bare neck, saying, "Turns out the necklace Pop left me had some magic in it. It shattered but drove the demon off long enough for me to get away. When I got home, Mom explained some stuff. So… I guess you've been write this whole time."

"About time you realized that," her rival said as he sat back and opened his bento. As he started eating, he asked between bites, "So, what do you think of the new teacher? Something about him seems a bit off to me."

"Well, he's a demon, ain't he?" Yamiko asked. Snickering as Seigi started gagging on his food in shock, Yamiko thumped his back as she added, "I thought you were supposed to be able to sense that kind of stuff with your super ninja powers or whatever."

As Seigi finished clearing his throat, he replied. "First, I'm from a clan of Demon Slayers, not ninja, although some of our techniques and equipment are similar. Second, I have to be concentrating to sense demonic auras, and I can't at school, anyway. There's some sort of interference from the protective seals the principal set up."

"Protective seals?" Yamiko muttered, before remembering what her mother had mentioned the night before. "Oh, Old Man Domeikuni must be the Onmyouji mom told me about."

"That's right. So, if a demon managed to get through his seals, we should tell him right away," Seigi said, before asking, "How do you know the new teacher's a demon, anyway?"

"Well, he put a compulsion on most of the class. Almost got me, even, until I realized what he was doing," Yamiko explained. "Once I figured it out, though, it was pretty easy to shrug off."

"Let me guess, another thing your mother explained?" Seigi asked rhetorically. Running his hand along his headband, he added, "I suppose I should be glad my father put a seal on this to protect the wearer against mind-affecting magic. Anyway, lunch is almost over, so we should hurry up and get to the principal's office."

Finishing up their meals, the pair headed down from the roof. As they descended, Yamiko said, "Speaking of your dad… I guess this means you were right about what happened to them, too."

"Is this your way of saying you're sorry about that, too?" Seigi asked. "I'll help you deal with this demon teacher. But don't think some half-assed apology is enough to make us friends again."

"Who asked to be?" Yamiko retorted, in a way feeling comforted by the return to their usual antagonistic comments.

As they approached their destination, however, Seigi suddenly pulled up short.

"What i-" Yamiko started, only for Seigi to silence her by pressing a finger to her lips. Before she could protest, Yamiko heard a familiar voice from ahead of them.

"-need something from me?" The voice of their new teacher came from around the corner. "Lunch is almost over, it wouldn't do for teachers to be late to class, now would it?" Peeking around the corner, the pair saw him being confronted by another pair of teachers.

The first was their physical education teacher, Fukkatsushi Ketsueko. With short black hair, dark eyes, and an athletic build, she looked every bit the tomboy that she was. Yamiko had once heard that a student had asked her out, and Ketsueko had agreed, but only if they could beat her at arm wrestling. According to the rumor, she had almost lost her job after breaking the student's arm.

The other was their chemistry teacher, Fukkatsushi Honemaru. With scruffy, shoulder-length hair and grey eyes that seemed to regard everything as just another research specimen, Honemaru rounded out the 'mad scientist' look by constantly wearing an old lab coat. Yamiko could not remember ever seeing him without a book in his hand, usually some scientific or historical work with titles a paragraph long. The current book's title said something about Slovenian hay-racks, whatever those were.

"We simply wanted to give you a little friendly warning," Honemaru said, without looking up from his book. "That was a rather risky maneuver you attempted this morning."

"In other words, pull that shit again and you're gonna pay for it, got it?" Ketsueko growled, jabbing a finger into the new teacher's chest. "If you go and expose yourself, you're not the only one who's gonna be in trouble, and that would really piss us off."

"Oh my, that almost sounded like a threat," Redfield replied, sounding more amused than intimidated. "I suppose I had better be on my best behavior, then. Now, if you'll excuse me…" Not waiting for a reply, he simply walked around the pair, and continued on his way.

Pressing back against the wall, Yamiko and Seigi kept out of sight as their homeroom teacher strolled past. Once he was gone, they peeked around the corner once more, only to see no trace of the other two teachers.

"Well… that was weird," Yamiko said.

"You can say that again," Seigi agreed.

"Well… that was weird," Yamiko said, smirking at the annoyed glare she got in return. "So, do you think those two are demons, too?"

"No, I've already checked them outside of school, and neither give off demonic auras," Seigi said, as the approached the principal's office. "That said, I'm not entirely convinced that they're human, either."

* * *

**AN:** And there we go! Finally got Yamiko back to school, only for her to begin discovering just how close the supernatural was to her, all along.

How did a demon manage to infiltrate Yamiko's school? What are these other two teachers up to? Find out in future chapters of Yamiko: Edge of Humanity!


End file.
